KARACHI, Nov 13: Karachiites are still found fighting against mosquito borne diseases as two more persons, including a minor girl died, amid reports of over 106 fresh arrivals at 15 government-run and private hospitals during the last 24 hours, ending 4 pm Monday.

A total of 3440 dengue fever epidemic cases have been reported in the megapolis with 36 deaths.

As the dengue fever cell of the Sindh health department on Monday reported death of two more patients, toll of deaths in the city rose to eight since Nov 1, while about 1,480 people, including minors and adults, are believe to have contracted the mosquito afflicted dengue disease in the same period.

Dr Shakeel Mullick of the DFC Sindh said on Monday that Shakil-ur-Rahman, 33, a resident of Saudabad, Malir, succumbed to dengue fever at Liaquat National Hospital on Monday. The patient was admitted to the hospital on Nov 9 with symptoms similar to dengue fever.

He said that the cell had been informed on Monday that one Mahnoor, 8, a resident of Landhi, a dengue suspected case, died at the Aga Khan University Hospital late on Nov 11.

Giving the number of patients admitted in various hospitals throughout Sindh during the last 24 hours, Dr Mullick said that as many as 3,516 people have, so far, been admitted since June, for treatment of viral haemorrhagic fever or dengue fever.

After conducting laboratory tests, 27 hospitals in the province reported that a total of 1267 (36 per cent) patients were detected positive for dengue fever.Of the patients admitted in Karachi hospitals, 1,244 have been found positive for dengue fever. As many as 106 people were discharged after treatment during the past 24 hours, while the number of patients still under treatment at 18 hospitals was 234, according to the DFC data.

Patients of viral fever were brought to the hospitals from Chakiwara, Sutalanabad, Clifton, Bughdadi, Korangi, Lea Market, Bihar Colony, Agra Taj, Tipu Sultan Road, Garden East, PECHS, Liaquatabad, Jamshed Road, Karimabad, Fedral B Area, Gulistan-i-Jauher, Gulshan-i-Iqbal, New Town, North Karachi, Lyari, North Nazimabad, Orangi, DHA, etc.

A maximum of 23 patients were admitted at Dr Ziauddin Hospital during the last 24 hours, followed by 16 at Liaquat Naional Hospital, 13 at National Institute of Child Health, nine at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre.

The patient position at different city hospitals on Monday remained as follows: AKU- 12 (six new), LNH - 35 (16), CHK -nine (six), ZUH - 39 (23), BTH – nine (five), NICH-13 (all new), Abbasi Shaheed Hospital - 32(one), Baqai Hospital - 13(five), Darul Shifa - 12 (seven), Chiniot Hospital - seven (one), Zainab Punjwani Hospital – one (one), Kutiyana Hospital – six (two) and Sambrose Hopsital – two (two).

Analysts believe that the peak phase of dengue epidemic was still prevalent as on average over 100 fresh cases have been brought during the last 10 to 12 days, while the authorities were expecting fever culmination by the last week of October. Practically, the health authorities are now looking up to communities for their own help, while waiting for the forecast to come true that the dengue vector and virus will die their own with the onset of winter.

In the meantime, Bismillah Taqee Institute of Health Sciences and Blood Disease Centre has started distributing a booklet on “Dengue Fever” among officials of the provincial and local governments, administrative personnel of private and government hospitals and educational institutions.